Choosing a lens
Progressive vs single vision lenses
Single vision gives you one distance across the whole lens. Progressive adds reading power toward the bottom.
The short answer
Single vision lenses correct one distance, usually far away. The whole lens is clear for it. Progressive lenses correct distance at the top and add reading power toward the bottom, for your phone and a book. Your prescription tells you which you can order. If it has a number in the ADD column, you can choose progressive. If it doesn’t, single vision is the lens that matches it.
Side by side
Single vision and progressive compared
| Single vision | Progressive | |
|---|---|---|
| Corrects | One distance | Distance at the top, reading at the bottom, the middle in between |
| Clear area | The whole lens | A corridor down the center; the sides soften |
| Prescription | Any eyeglass prescription | Needs an ADD power |
| Price at L&F | Base price | About $100 more |
Single vision
Why single vision feels so easy
With single vision lenses, the entire lens is set to one distance. Your peripheral vision stays clear when your eyes move left or right.
The catch shows up once you need help up close. A distance pair makes your phone blurry, so you take them off or switch to readers.
Progressive
Why people choose progressive
A progressive lets you keep one pair on. You see down the street through the top of the lens and read your phone through the bottom.
The cost is the corridor. Fitting every distance into one lens narrows the clear channel down the middle. You learn to turn your head toward what you want to see. How progressive lenses work.
Reading your prescription
How to tell from your prescription
Your eye doctor already decided whether you have a reading correction. Look at the columns.
- SPH, CYL and AXIS only
This is a single vision prescription. Order single vision lenses.
- A number under ADD
You have a reading correction. You can order progressive lenses, or single vision for distance only.
- Not sure
Upload it to Read My Rx. It explains each value and which lens type matches.
A third option
For long days at a desk
A full progressive spends part of the lens on distances you don’t use at a desk. If your day is a phone, a keyboard and a monitor, our EV6 lens focuses from 18 inches to 6 feet. Because it stops there, its corridor is much wider.
EV6 can be made to your own prescription by choosing Custom Rx.
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Prescription eyeglasses
Every frame comes in single vision or progressive.
How it works
From your prescription to your door
Pick a frame and your lenses
Choose single vision or progressive. Eyeglasses come with clear lenses or our Indoor / Outdoor lens tint option. Sunglasses come with Grey or Brown Polarized lenses.
Add your prescription and PD
Upload a photo of your prescription when you order, or send it afterward from the link we email you. Our team reviews every prescription before we start.
We make them in about two weeks
We digitally surface, coat and edge your lenses in our California lab. Shipping is free and takes about three days.
Common questions
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if I need single vision or progressive lenses?
Look for a number in the ADD column. ADD is the extra near-vision power your eye doctor prescribed for reading. If your prescription has one, you can order progressive lenses. If it doesn’t, single vision is the lens that matches it.
What if I order progressive and my prescription has no ADD?
We can’t make progressive lenses without an ADD power. We’ll switch your order to single vision and refund the $100 difference.
Can I get single vision lenses with a progressive prescription?
Yes. We can make distance-only lenses from a progressive prescription, for driving for example. Order single vision and tell us which distance you want.
Are progressive lenses more expensive?
Progressive lenses cost about $100 more than single vision.
Do you make bifocals?
We don’t make lined bifocals or trifocals. A progressive lens gives you distance and near correction in one lens with no visible line. Darren, our co-founder, calls them no-line bifocals.
What prescription do you need?
Any licensed eye doctor’s eyeglass prescription works. Upload a photo or PDF when you order, or send it later from the link we email you. A contact lens prescription measures something different, so we can’t use one. Our team reviews every prescription before we start.
Single vision or progressive
Every frame comes both ways.
Lenses made to your prescription · Free 3-day shipping · 60-day remakes
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